Spring is a magnificent time of year. We relish the end of winter and the arrival of spring in all its glory. Spring gardening is some of the easiest gardening. The cold of winter causes magic to happen inside the many bulbs and tubers, causing a cacophony of color. We anxiously await the first blossoms.
We have learned over the years that daffodils do better in our garden than almost any other bulb. The deer do not eat them. They readily multiply. They faithfully return each year and they require no maintenance.
“Happiness quite unshared can scarcely be called happiness; it has no taste.”
― Charlotte Bronte
We enjoy our garden so much and cannot keep it only to ourselves. We usually have daily visitors, even if they are just the neighborhood children. Last year and this year, we opened the garden to the general public.
We do not get a lot of visitors, but we enjoy those people who do visit. This year some of our visitors were relatives of a former owner of the house. Our address is Genna Way. The name was chosen as it was the name of the first grandchild of the Pariser’s, long time residents of the home. Genna came to visit and brought her extended family. Scott Manley, our local Town of Newburgh councilman also visited, along with his granddaughter and girlfriend.
Saturday evening, we hosted a dinner party to celebrate the garden and spring. Unfortunately, Saturday was a rainy day. It seemed like the rain would never stop. We had an early dinner after an abbreviated tour of the garden.
We served dessert with a magnolia petal. They are edible and have a mild ginger taste. I would not eat a lot of them, but they make a nice novelty for visitors. Overall, it was a lovely early evening of eating, fun, flowers and laughs.
My neighbor, Martine, sent me a photograph she had taken in early May of 2018, the same week we were closing on the house. What is noticeable in the two photos is the tangle of invasive plants in the right of the 2018 photo and the daffodils in our woodland garden in the 2024 photo.
We have many flowering trees and plants. It is always surprising when people ask if we planted the large magnolia tree. It must be 80 years old. Many people have no concept of gardening and what it takes to grow trees and other plants.
Living in the Hudson Valley is so rewarding. We have endless pleasure from walking around the garden, year round, but spring is especially nice.
Wild Violets in the back yard, purple and white, along with a few dandelions. We obviously do not use chemicals on the lawn.
An update on the oriental garden. Our tree peonies have returned. We have blossoms on two plants and the third is sprouting new branches. The third plant I thought had died. It lost all growth early in the summer. Nothing was growing above ground, and it appeared dead. Miraculously it came to live this spring. Sadly, one of our visitors over the weekend did not stay on the path and broke off a newly planted bare root tree peony. I am hoping it has enough root to regenerate. Having visitors has drawbacks. Last fall, I planted many new iris rhizomes from the Historic Iris Preservation Society. These are all growing and promise a lovely backdrop to the peonies.
The wonder of spring lasts for weeks. Even if it is too cold to spend much time outside, we revel in the views from our windows. Daily walks through the garden include careful inspection to see what new plant is coming out of the ground or blossoming. There is something of the child in all of us in spring. We marvel at nature and the many intricacies of plants. We revel in warmer days and relish the brightness of the sunshine. Along with nature we awaken and anticipate summer.
PJM Rhododendron next to the vegetable garden fence.